Brookville's Young named to 3rd Team All-State

January 16, 2012

Brookville senior Jordan Young punts the ball during the semi-finals of the District-IX Class AA football playoffs against Karns City Nov. 12, 2011. Young was named to the Pennsylvania Football News' All-State Football Team as a third team All-State Offensive Lineman. (Photo by Lizi Arbogast/Spirit file photo)

BROOKVILLE â€”Â Brookville senior Jordan Young lined up on offense every Friday night during the 2011 football season.

He helped lead the corps, serving as a team captain, and dominated game in and game out, and recently, he was recognized for his efforts.

The Pennsylvania Football News released its All-State Football teams Jan. 4, and Brookville senior Jordan Young was named to the third team as an offensive lineman.

"Jordan's very good; he had a very good year," Raiders head coach Chris Dworek said. "I was hopeful he would get some recognition in some All-State areas. He's very deserving of that, and it didn't surprise me at all."

Young was a powerhouse on the offensive line for the Raiders this season, and he was also successful in several other areas.

"He was very dominant, especially from the tackle," Dworek said. "He was very strong, very quick. Being a four-year player and a three-year starter, he was very experienced. He knew a lot of tricks."

Dworek said Young did a lot of work during the offseason to work his conditioning up to where it needed to be for him to be successful on both sides of the ball.

Defensively, Young had 61 tackles for the Raiders and led the team with six sacks.

On the offensive side, he had two carries for 45 yards. He also was successful on special teams, serving as the punter for Brookville. He had 33 punts for 1,065 yards, averaging 32.27 yards per punt.

Young recently has considered his options to continue his football career at the collegiate level, and Dworek said several scouts came in December to look at Young and several other Raiders.

"He just wants to play in college, and it really doesn't matter (at what position)," Dworek said. "That's a good attitude to have."

The Raiders also received glory in several other categories with seven players given honorable mentions at the All-State level. Dworek said he was expecting Brookville to earn a lot of glory.

"We had some good players; it's not surprising to get recognized," Dworek said. "We've been involved with a lot of things throughout the state, so we have a pretty good reputation. It's a reward for (people) noticing some good players and knowing Brookville has a traditionally good program."

Senior Steven Kennedy was given an honorable mention at defensive back. Kennedy played at cornerback for most of his junior and senior years, and Dworek said he knew Kennedy was reliable.

"He was just solid," Dworek said. "He just had a very good year defensively. I can't remember him giving up any touchdown passes. He's a good, solid passer and a good tackler."

Defensively, Kennedy had 28 tackles, averaging 2.5 per game. He also had one pick.

Kennedy was also the starting quarterback for the Raiders and threw for 1,233 yards and 15 touchdowns. He had a 55 percent pass completion and threw just six interceptions.

Rushing was another high point of Kennedy's game, as he ran 558 yards on 96 carriers and had four touchdowns on the ground.

Kennedy is another Raider who hopes to continue playing football at college, and Dworek said colleges would be lucky to have him at any position.

"He would like to stay at quarterback, but I think athletically, colleges will love him to play on defense," Dworek said. "His highlight film is very impressive, too, so they'll see he can play at quarterback."

Another of Kennedy's strong traits was his leadership skills both on and off the field. Kennedy also served as one of four captains for Brookville this season.

"He's definitely a good leader; he was a real good leader by example," Dworek said. "He put a lot of time in the offseason and tried to get a lot of his teammates in the weight room. He was always contacting guys and letting them know when the weight room was open, so he was a good leader in that way."

The second honorable mention for Brookville was AJ Skerkavich on the defensive line.

Skerkavich was one Raider who Dworek thought should have been named to the All-Conference team in December, but he just missed the mark, and Dworek was pleased Skerkavich finally earned his recognition.

"That's definitely rewarding for him," Dworek said. "When someone comes out later and notices that, that really made him feel good, and he was pretty happy about that."

Skerkavich was another four-year player, three-year starter for the Raiders, and although he battled some injuries last year, Dworek said that did not show.

"He had a pretty good, mostly injury-free season this season," Dworek said. "He came back real strong; he's just solid. He has a great mentality and knows how to get the best of his abilities."

Tied for second on the team, Skerkavich had four sacks during the 2011 season. He also caused one fumble and earned 47 tackles in just 10 games.

Another senior honored was Dakota Singleton at linebacker. Singleton served as the Raiders' weakside linebacker and had the second-most tackles on the team with 87.

"He was super solid on defense," Dworek said. "To be a full-time starter at linebacker, it just shows a lot about his athleticism. He used his speed and his smartness."

On defense, Singleton had one sack and a fumble recovery. He also had the only safety of the season Oct. 7, 2011, against Clarion-Limestone.

"The neat thing with him was you could do a lot of stunts and blitzes with him, and he was quick enough and strong enough to still control that weak side and cause some problems on that weak side," Dworek said. "The more problems you can cause for the offense, the better, and that's what he was able to do."

Singleton also a had strong special teams game, retuning six kickoffs for 95 yards, averaging 15.83 yards per return.

Offensively, Singleton rushed the ball nine times, totaling 39 yards.

Junior Nate Bonfardine also received an honorable mention at linebacker, and Dworek said he was incredibly impressed with Bonfardine's season.

"He just had a solid year," Dworek said. "He was our middle linebacker. He was kind of like the quarterback of the defense. He calls the strength of our defense, making sure everyone is lining up correctly, and he did a super job."

Bonfardine was the Raiders' leading tackler with 118. He also had a pick, a fumble recovery and a sack to help the team's efforts defensively.

Dworek said Bonfardine was another hard worker in the offseason, which helped him to get into the shape he needed to be.

On the ground, Bonfardine had 16 rushes for 63 yards and one touchdown, which Dworek said was important to help the Raiders be more balanced offensively.

"As things progressed, he was in there a lot more," Dworek said. "His role was more of a blocker, but it was still very important. His yards per carry was very good. Definitely being ready and being a smart player helped him."

Junior Cam Yard was also recognized as an honorable mention All-State kicker. Yard earned 25 points after kicking, and he was one of the best in the district.

"He's been kicking for a long time; he started kicking while playing youth soccer and kicked a lot with the Lumberjack team," Dworek said of Yard's kicking career. "In ninth-grade, you could just see him getting stronger and better."

Yard was another Raider who was very versatile. Offensively, he rushed the ball 10 times for 67 yards and one touchdown; he also had six receptions for 92 yards.

On the defensive side, Yard managed 19 tackles and one pick.

In addition, he returned 10 kickoffs and totaled 132 yards.

"It's just typical of someone who works hard, gets a lot better, and that gets him awards and recognition," Dworek said. "He deserves that."

The youngest Raider to be honored was sophomore running back Zach Vroman, who was the Raiders' leading rusher.

"I saw him as a ninth-grader, ... and he was very impressive," Dworek said. "I knew his mentality and his work ethic, so I knew he would do well."

Vroman stepped in as a first-year starter after an injury early in the season, and Dworek said he was glad Vroman was ready for his chance.

"I knew he was ready physically and mentally; you could see he was ready to play and get some responsibilities on his shoulders," Dworek said. "Whenever his chance came, he was just prepared."

Vroman led the team with 807 rushing yards over 136 carries, and he was also the team's leading scorer on the ground with eight touchdowns.

As a returner, Vroman led the Raiders in kickoff return yards, totaling 417 yards on 19 returns. He also ran back 10 punts, tallying 112 yards, and he had the only punt returned for a touchdown for Brookville during the season.

Vroman was also a prowess defensively, earning himself 30 tackles and causing and recovering one fumble.

Because of Vroman's age, he still has two years left in his Raider career. During that time, Dworek said Vroman will be viewed as a leader because of the experience he gained this season.

"He's going to be in a different spot next year; he's going to be looked on as a leader of the team as a junior, which is good," Dworek said. "He's going to be able to take some younger guys under his wing and have a little bit better relationship with them than most seniors do. We're going to push him a little bit more and lean on him to be a leader."

The final Raider given an honorable mention was senior Sebastian Kerr at wide receiver.

"He was definitely our go-to receiver offensively," Dworek said. "(When it was) crunch time, look for him. He made a lot of the diving catches. His run block was really good, and he's gotten a lot better at that."

Kerr had a dominating season, leading the team with 36 catches for 543 yards. He was also a team leader with six receiving touchdowns.

Kerr was also a threat defensively, as he picked off six interceptions, leading the team, and made 54 tackles.

As a team-choosen captain, Dworker said Kerr clearly commanded a lot of respect from his teammates.

"The guys selected him (to be a captain), so that meant he had that respect from his peers, which was important," Dworek said. "When the players pick the captain, that's a little more powerful."

Kerr is another Raider looking to continue his football career at the collegiate level, and Dworek said he sparked interest from scouts this year due to his good season.

Although the Raiders will be losing a strong 14-man senior corps, Dworek has high hopes for the upcoming seasons and knows the strength of Brookville's football program will continue in the future.